Luxury property developer, GURNER™ has announced its foray into hotel developments with a strategic partnership with fast-growing boutique hotel brand, Veriu, as the developer eyes more opportunities to retain and invest in assets long term.

GURNER

Artist impression of initial concept

The partnership will see the developer hold and retain ownership of a proposed 95-room hotel and ground floor retail space, in the first of many planned long-term retained assets moving forward.

The developer has slated its $120m mixed-use development at 23 – 33 Johnston Street, Collingwood, for the site of the first hotel concept, to be inspired by New York’s famous Crosby Hotel.

Under the proposed model, the site will encompass 65 high-end residential residences, along with 95 “luxury residential-inspired” hotel rooms and a 700sqm retail component occupying the lower two levels.

The proposed plans will include a large dedication to first-class services and amenity for which the GURNER™ brand has become so well known, replicated on a luxury hotel scale and offered to both hotel guests and residents.

Initial concepts include a hotel bar, rooftop pool and amenity offering, along with a porte-cochere, concierge, valet and room service.

Tim Gurner, founder and CEO of GURNER™ has said that, “We absolutely love everything about Collingwood – its incredible food and wine culture, its heritage history and warehouse-inspired architecture.

“Now, our proposed hotel and residences complex, located adjacent to the Cultural Arts Precinct will help establish this part of Collingwood as one of Melbourne’s most important cultural and residential pockets.

“I personally have delivered over 20 buildings in this suburb and feel such an affinity for the area, but development sites here are becoming increasingly challenging to acquire so our strategic move into hotels will allow us to retain ownership in these assets into the future.

“Collingwood already has an incredible arts and cultural environment and with major corporations now moving into the area we believe the hotel will offer something that has never been on offer before in Melbourne for corporates, tourists and international travellers – a true place where visitors can be a part of the action.

“We are launching a number of new residential projects in Collingwood over the next six months but our vision is to be here long-term for multi generations.

“Our diversification into commercial and now, hotel developments, allows us the flexibility to retain ownership over a number of these sites.

“We will maintain close control over the concepts, design and experiences within the hotels which is why we have partnered with Veriu as the operator; their vision is closely aligned with ours to deliver high-end boutique hotels of a world-class standard.

“Our dual model allows us to also offer the luxury hotel services to the owners of our residences, too, so a resident would be able to valet-park their car, order room service and request a nightly turn-down service, to deliver an unparalleled living experience in a way that is not currently offered on a local scale,” said Tim Gurner, founder and CEO of GURNER™.

GURNER™ is currently in the design process and will look to submit an application for the hotel development later this year.